The Only Exception
by Saphira Veera
Summary: Tsurara knows the risks. She knows the dangers of being in love; falling for her master was probably the most perilous act she had done. Yet she still loves him, and love she did. Read on as she falls asleep on the roof and a mysterious figure appears. RIKUO X TSURARA oneshot. Read and review please?


**A/N: Heloo there! This is my second attempt at writing a NuraMago fic with the pairing Rikuo and Tsurara! I know it sucks, but please bear with me. **

** Additional Notes:**

_Italics - Character's thoughts_

_ **Bold and Italics - Yoru (Night Rikuo/Rikuo's Yokai Form)**_

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago and its characters. Nor do I own the song from Paramore! I just borrow the title :)**

**Credits to the song The Only Exception by Paramore and It's All Too Much by YUI for the inspiration and lyrics!**

_**ENJOY!**_

The daily bustle of the Nura Main house. It was a school day for the young Sandaime of the Nura clan, and he was...well, to put it simply, very very late.

"Uwaaa!" cried Rikuo as he slipped on a piece of wet cloth that was left stranded on the floor by a wondering inferior, hitting his head hard on the wooden floor.

"Waka!" came a reply, and a familiar anxious face came into view. "Are you alright, waka?"

Rikuo pushed himself off the floor, and rubbed his head, grinning sheepishly to hide his otherwise painful throb his head was making.

_**Funny, I don't remember drinking that much,**_ said a deep male voice in his head, amused.

_You never remember anything when you drink! _growled the human Rikuo. He grabbed his bag and ran outside the house after saying a hasty farewell to his mother. He was just outside the gates when two of his bodyguards jogged up next to him, one of whom was holding out a bento box.

"T-Tsurara?" wheezed Rikuo, trying to speak and run simultaneously.

"You forgot your lunch, waka!" she exclaimed, pushing the box into his hands, a very worried look on her face. "You're going to be late!"

"I'm very well aware of that!" He grasped the bento box in his hands, and together they sprinted towards their school, wheezing and panting.

The blue-haired maiden who was clothed in her usual long sleeved uniform and plain blue pleated skirt, jogged along with her master by her side, her face pale pink. Feelings she did not yet understand surfaced, and she found herself grinning and giggling at herself, which resulted in several puzzled looks from both Rikuo and Aotabo, the latter raising an eyebrow at Tsurara's quirkiness. Rikuo suddenly laughed along with her, and for no particular reasons, they laughed, chuckled and giggled like there was no tomorrow.

In that second, that little moment of elated peace and joy, her heartbeat thudded faster. And it was wonderful.  
_No, it's...beautiful._ She whispered to herself, resonating loudly within the crevices of her heart, caging it.

They reached the school gates in the nick of time, stealing a few seconds just before the bell rang. As they entered the school gates, Rikuo bumped into someone, causing him to pedal backwards, his glasses askew as a result of the force.  
"Rikuo-sama!" Tsurara exclaimed (in her super-ultra adorable voice), rushing to his side.

"Ah, Rikuo-kun!" A familiar voice cried out, steadying the brown-haired boy. "I'm sorry! I figured you were late so I came here and waited for you!"

Rikuo blinked rapidly as he straightened his glasses. "Aa K-Kana-chan! Demo, why wait for me? You can be in trouble for coming in late!" The bell rang and they surged forward, fumbling with their bags and straightening their uniform.

"Never mind that," answered Kana, smiling at him, her cheeks a faint shade of pink. She reached out, grabbed his hand in hers and dragged him away, leaving a very confused Kurata/Aotabo and a fuming Tsurara.

Class proceeded smoothly. Hours flew by and breaktime came. As usual, Tsurara brought her lunch and joined her circle of friends, glancing suspiciously at Kana, who was sitting close to Rikuo as if discussing something important.

Tsurara narrowed her eyes and noticed that Kana's hair had been clipped carefully to the side, held together with a pretty sunflower clip, adorned with glittering jewels. Said one turned as if she had realized someone's eyes were on her, and saw Tsurara standing awkwardly near the door, holding her lunchbox.

Rikuo followed her eyes and met Tsurara's disguising blue orbs. He grinned.

"Come join us, Tsurara!" He heartily called out, beckoning for her to come closer. She smiled at him enthusiastically, and sat on a desk not far from where they were sitting. Kiyotsugu, Maki, Torii and Shima were sitting close by, engaged in a conversation, leaving them three.

"Ah Tsurara, your bento's delicious, as expected," complimented Rikuo, gesturing at his empty box, cleaned of its contents. Tsurara grinned cheerfully. "Yokatta ne," she responded.

"Ah was that her making?" Kana asked, blinking in surprise. She turned to Tsurara. "You are a very good cook, Oikawa-san!"  
Tsurara smiled, a little taken aback at the unexpected compliment. "Thank you, Ienaga-san. Ah, and um, I-I was wondering, where did you get that adorable sunflower hairclip?" When the words came out of her mouth, Tsurara was close to shocked to hear herself ask it.

"Aah, t-this clip, you mean?" Kana asked, fingering her clip. She released her little clip, her brown hair tumbling down in waves on her shoulder. She fondled the clip in a loving manner, blushing a little.

Tsurara also noticed that Rikuo was blushing as well, a slow sheepish grin forming on his face.  
"It was my birthday gift from Rikuo-kun a few years ago."

The blue-eyed girl's heart thudded. Almost afraid, she glanced at her master's face. He was still grinning, the shade of pink still upon his cheeks.

"I didn't know you still kept it, Kana-chan! That was like, several years ago!" He exclaimed.

"Of course I did, silly! It's a very pretty clip, the most beautiful gift anyone has..ever given t-to me." Kana finished, a little hesitating on her words, her head bent.

Tsurara glared daggers at her, certain that her rival was thinking that very day when her master had brought her to the district where the Neko clan inhabited in his night form.

"Souka," chuckled Rikuo. "Glad you did, though. Thanks, Kana-chan."

"Eh? What are you talking about? It was you who gave it to me!"

"Did I?" teased Rikuo.

Kana was about to retort playfully when Tsurara stood up, toppling the chair backwards with a loud thump.

Everyone was silent as Tsurara stood, her face covered by the shadows of her fringe.

"T-Tsurara?" Rikuo inquired, blinking at her.

Another awkward silence followed. Kiyotsugu, who remained as oblivious as ever, cleared his throat.

"Everyone, listen!" He announced, spreading his arms wide.

All heads turned to the leader of the Kiyo Cross Squad, except for Tsurara who remained unperturbed.

"Has anyone here ever heard of the Snow Woman, the Yuki-Onna?"

"Of course we all do, Kiyotsugu!" Torii exclaimed, crossing her arms.

"Aa!" Kiyotsugu lifted a finger. "But did you not know that, legend has it, she has fallen for Nurarihyon, the leader of all yokai?"

Maki propped her head against her elbow, looking bored. "And so they married. The end."

"Aha! And there is where you are proven wrong!" Kiyotsugu looked extremely pleased. "The Yuki-Onna, named Setsura, I believe, has indeed fallen for him, but did he feel the same way? No! Instead he married a human!"

Rikuo stood up abruptly, causing all eyes to turn to him. "H-How did you know that?"

"That is for me to know, Nura-kun!" Kiyotsugu replied.

"But why wouldn't he marry her? The Yuki-Onna I mean. Isn't she a powerful yokai? An evil one at that," Shima inquired.

Kiyotsugu shrugged. "I have no idea. Perhaps she isn't as attractive."

Rikuo butted in again, denying his words. "N-No, you're wrong! She's - She may be cold and evil -" He shivered as he recalled his last meeting with the woman. "- but she is beautiful."

He turned to Tsurara, expecting her to say something, to defend her own mother, but she was no longer there. His eyes travelled to the door._ T-Tsurara?_

"Now, I don't know what you're saying, Nura-kun, but..." Kiyotsugu launched into a full-scale speech as Rikuo stared at the empty chair where Tsurara was sitting minutes before.

X - X - X

The blue-haired aide opened the door to the roof, her lips pursed. The cold air hit her in the face, causing her hair to billow all around her. She stepped outside and walked over to the banister. Winter was nearly here. Her season. She looked up at the sky, willing for it to snow right there and then, to feel the soft chilled snowflakes lie across her skin. She sighed. She knew she weren't supposed to feel this way. She knew that Kana was a very important person to her master, a childhood friend. A person that gave Rikuo a sense of normality, that there was at least a thread of sanity to hang on to.

Rikuo may be cool at times, but Tsurara knew it was hard to maintain his cool and be a leader simultaneously. He must always appear confident lest all his followers would hesitate. And Kana was a place he could head home and forget all that. To finally feel happiness.

She gripped the railing harder.

_Oh Waka. How I wish I could be the one to hold your heart close to me. I would be ever so gentle with it. I would never let it crack for it is a fragile thing._

Something cold touches her skin. She looked skywards. It was snowing.

_They say love is cold. They say love is warm. They say love is complicated; they say love is simple. But it is neither. Love is...something we all need, like black isn't black without white. Darkness is sublime because of the light._

She heaved in a cold chilly breath.

_Waka... When I was young, I witnessed my Mother cry tears that might form a river because of a man who never did return her feelings. I watched as she tried to glue the pieces back; her heart of which she had given willingly to the man she adored; her heart of which he had left for it to crack under the pressure of another woman's heart of whom he loved. I watched as she clasped the pieces, broken, useless, in her hands, and made me vow that I would never suffer from the same thing. That I would always, always be content with loneliness, because it simply isn't worth._ Yet...

The snow fell harder, but Tsurara did not notice. Allowing the snowflakes to come floating on herself, making wet patches on her uniform, she walked back near the door and sat there, closing her eyes.  
Yet...

Could she? Can she be content with the windows closed and the lights off? Would it be enough?

_No. Mother... I... I made a promise to you that I must stop before I fall. Put it to an end before I realize that the walls are rocketing skywards and I am falling. Dropping. And..._

She sighed, her eyelids getting heavy. The cold enveloped her in its icy hands.

_...I... I've always kept my distance, yet he makes the hole bigger, Mother. So now I'm falling. And falling even deeper. I'm such a slave to these feelings that run through my body; I can't help it. You say I must go through alone, remaining impassive, keeping a straight face. But it...doesn't work for me. Maybe I've fallen too deep. Maybe it's just too late to climb back up the hole._

Tsurara smiled a tired smile.

_But I feel complete when I'm near him, Mother. I love him, just as you loved Nurarihyon-sama. Maybe he won't return the feelings I felt for him. But he is the only exception...Mother. After all..._

The blue-haired aide fell into a light slumber, a smile etched onto her cheery face. Snowflakes fell and floated in the air, plastering on her face.

A figure appeared. Its eyes fell on the young woman, and it crouched, a smile lilting upon its lips. Brushing off the snowflakes that glued to her like magnet, it sat down next to her and clasped her cold hand, warming it in its own.

The familiar brown eyes slowly turned to a deep crimson red. A smirk painted his face as he stared at her sleeping face. Both figures sat there, waiting for the snowfall to end.

Kiseki tte aru deshou? Nee, sou deshou?  
**After all, miracles do exist. Well, don't they?**

**Well? Did you like it? I know I know. I suck. Anyway let me know what you think of it. I have several ideas i intend to write about Rikuo and Tsurara. If you'd like me to write it, do let me know in the reviews. Review please?**

**Thank you so much. **

**Again, thank you to Paramore for the wonderful song and lyrics! And YUI for the beautiful lyrics!**


End file.
